Vintage Ford Mustang Tech Advice - August 2014

Beyond the Basics

Bob Aliberto

July 16, 2014

II Tires

I have a ’78 Mustang II fastback with the OE P195/70R13 tires that need replacement. Having checked with several local tire shops and online retailers I am being told these are no longer available, and I have been given no suggestions other than to purchase new 14-inch or larger wheels and change my tire size. I like the look of my stock wheels and the car has only 71K miles from new. It has the 302 V-8 and T-tops. Do you have any suggestions? I’m also a long time reader of Mustang Monthly. Keep up the good work.

Morris James
Via the Internet

Unfortunately, we came up just as dead-ended on this search as you did. Checking all of the major tire manufacturers and even a few overseas rubber companies came up with zilch. The easy answer is upgrading to 15-inch or larger wheels, but we understand many people like to keep the stock appearance. To that end, we asked around and we were suggested a couple of alternative tire sizes that you should still be able to find. Shown in this chart is the original P195 tire and two alternatives, one a hair smaller, and one just a little bigger/wider. We know several Mustang II owners running the P205, as it lowers the car a hair and the wider rubber looks better on the car, too. Federal Tires (www.federaltire.com) carries both sizes in a few different tread designs/compounds.

Tire Size

P195/70R13

P185/70R13

P205/60R13

Diameter

23.7 inches

23.2 inches

22.7 inches

Width

7.68 inches

7.28 inches

8.07 inches

Sidewall

5.37 inches

5.1 inches

4.84 inches

Circumference

74.6 inches

72.8 inches

71.2 inches

Revs per mile

849.7

869.9

889.5

Fox Parts for ’67 Project

I have a ’67 coupe that I have been building slowly over the years. My next project will be the engine. The car currently has a 302 in it, but is in need of a rebuild and is down a cylinder and paired with a C4 trans. I was planning to rebuild the engine but then a friend tipped me off to a dirt-cheap ’91 GT, which I bought instead. It has a 5.0-liter from Edelbrock, or so I was told. I haven’t found any indication that it was an Edelbrock crate engine, but it does have the Performer intake, 170cc aluminum Performer heads, and an E303 cam. The GT also has shorty headers and exhaust, a T-5 five-speed, and 3.73 gears. I scored all of this for $1,000. The car itself has seen better days, but mechanically everything works great and it is a hoot to drive with its 320-330 hp (previous owner claimed). My plan is to swap the engine, trans, and rear into the ’67. My question is what other parts of the car can I use? I am particularly interested in the A/C components and the steering rack. I have a Total Control Products suspension on the ’67 now and it handles pretty well. Is the steering off the Fox something that is a viable swap, or not worth the hassle? And is the A/C from the Fox swappable? The system might not work anyway, as it doesn’t blow cold, but it could simply just need a charge.

Chance Hales
Via the Internet

The 5.0-liter engine and T-5 five-speed are staples of first-gen driveline swaps, and you’ll find plenty of supporting parts (crossmembers, headers, etc.) to fit the drivetrain into your ’67 hardtop. The 8.8-inch axle is a strong unit and more and more people are fitting them to the first-gen Mustang by either welding on leaf spring perches or using aftermarket suspension kits, such as the 8.8-inch mounting cradle system from AJE Racing (www.ajeracing.com). The A/C compressor can easily be adapted to original ’67 in-dash A/C setups or systems from the aftermarket, such as those from Old Air Products (www.oldairproducts.com), Classic Auto Air (www.classicautoair.com), or Vintage Air (www.vintageair.com) using custom-made hoses, as can be seen by this ’65 Mustang engine bay shown here. Sadly, the Fox rack-and-pinion setup is not easily adapted. The Fox is a “front steer” and the vintage Mustang is a “rear steer,” requiring major changes in spindles/suspension, and more to fit the Fox rack. If you truly want rack-and-pinion steering we suggest one of the aftermarket bolt-on rack kits designed for the ’65-’70 Mustang.